Company Review: ComfortDelgro (CPF)

ComfortDelgro is formed with the merger of Comfort and Delgro in 2003.  The company has stated upon merging, that the group aims to achieve 50% of its revenue from overseas operation within 5 to 7 years after merging and based on 2006 Annual Report, the company is well on its way.  The company has become the second largest land transport operator in 2006 with footprints in China, Australia, UK, Ireland, Vietnam and Malaysia.  Locally, the company owns SBSTransit, VICOM and Comfort Taxi fleets.  In 2006, the company has finally made a gain in NEL which will continue to do well with the North East getting more populated.  One major concern for the company is the volatile high oil price which has a negative financial impact on the company.  The group has coped with this problem quite well, continue to achieve reasonable growth in earning.

The group has a net profit margin of about 8% to 10% and ROE of about 13%.  The company has a generous dividend policy which pays out approximately 50% of its net earning.  Based on what I have read, Chairman Lim Jit Poh appears to be a detailed person with strong belief in his vision.

I have 5 lots of the group shares purchased at an average price of $1.538 which translates to a forward PE of about 13, cheap considering it has a market cap of about four billions.  At my purchased price, my dividend yield stands at approximately 5.8%.   I will continue to hold on to my shares as I am happy with its dividend and am pretty confident that the group can even be better for their 2^nd 5 years.

20071H Results

The company has posted a credible first half result with 8% and 10% growth in revenue and net profit respectively.  Oil price remains a major concern but I am sure the group has the capability to cope with it.